Taipei, Taiwan, MMD, the exclusive marketer and reseller for Philips-branded LCD monitors and public signage displays worldwide today announced the aggressive development in 2011 of a range of digital signage displays that implement the Intel Open Pluggable Specification (OPS). MMD is one of the first public signage display manufacturers to embrace this new interface technology which allows greater system flexibility and freedom of choice when it comes to choosing which third party media player to use in conjunction with display technology.

The OPS is expected to become an industry standard form factor for digital signage media players so that they can be inserted in to a slot on the side panel of a large display to create a fully integrated system. This will allow users to change or upgrade their media player as their requirements change, as quickly and simply as changing out a PCMCIA card.

“MMD is one of the pioneers from the display industry in promoting the OPS,” stated Craig Rathbun, Sales and Marketing Director of MMD’s public signage division, “and we see it becoming a pivotal technology in the future of digital signage.”

The OPS offers a universal, embedded interface which can link external media players with a large video display, thus providing users with simple but reliable integration of their signage and conferencing applications. One of the major benefits of the OPS is that there is no need for additional power cords, as the media player can draw its power from the connector in the docking station. Additionally when using a display with the integrated OPS slot, the overall dimensions of the unit are a constant, so there is no need for concern about where to place the media player – the solution is already at hand by simply sliding it in to the OPS slot.

“Digital signage users can now upgrade their hardware from a standard definition media player to a high definition one without needing to change the display whilst at the same time benefitting from the space saving possibilities afforded them by a fully integrated system,” continued Rathbun. “The OPS offers System Integrators a much more flexible yet compact public signage solution than ever before.”

MMD will be aggressively promoting the OPS feature in their range of digital signage displays during the course of 2011, with four models planned. The company’s first product to incorporate an OPS slot -the full high-definition BDL6540AT, an education-targeted white-board which is due for international launch in June. With its optical dual-touch capabilities, it offers users a wide array of interaction possibilities whilst at the same time offering excellent longevity thanks to the 4mm tempered glass to protect the LCD panel.

The vast majority of MMD’s public signage display range already incorporates the space saving design of the Smart Insert, a slot integrated on the rear panel of the display in to which a small form factor (SFF) PC can fit without adding to the overall depth of the unit. Now, with the introduction of the OPS in to the company’s range, MMD has taken a leading role in offering a fully integratable display that meets the needs of today’s digital signage System Integrator.

“We have always focused on introducing space-saving features such as Smart Insert,” concluded Rathbun, “but the implementation of OPS to our range takes this focus on to a whole new level. Slotting in an OPS PC module is equivalent to having a PC built in to the display with the added advantage that the user can upgrade and change that hardware module whenever the need arises.”

About MMD

MMD is a wholly owned company of TPV established in 2009 through a brand license agreement with Philips. MMD exclusively markets and sells Philips branded LCD displays worldwide. By combining the Philips brand promise with TPV’s manufacturing expertise in displays, MMD uses a fast and focused approach to bringing innovative products to market. MMD operates internationally with its European headquarters in Amsterdam and a local office in Prague to serve the Eastern European market. Through its network of local sales agents MMD works with all major European IT distributors and resellers. The company’s design and development centers are located in Taiwan and Eindhoven.

Intel is a trademark of Intel Corporation in the United States and other countries.

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